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Cooking Essentials: All About Chicken

Learn the skills you need to confidently cook chicken to perfection every time!

Join cookbook author and food writer Marge Perry and transform boring chicken dishes into flavorful meals the whole family will love! Learn how to evenly pound and perfectly sear boneless chicken breasts as well as stuff and bake bone-in breasts for tender, juicy results. Master the three-part process behind buffalo wings that easily outdo any restaurant version, and discover the potential in affordable, versatile chicken thighs and drumsticks. Learn two ways to roast a whole chicken — one that puts dinner on your table with only 10 minutes of prep time! Plus, quickly cut up or carve a whole chicken with Marge’s expert tips. Join today and gain the skills to make any chicken recipe a savory success!

Lesson plan

1:21

Lesson 1. Introduction

Meet food writer, cookbook author and culinary instructor Marge Perry, and let go of your anxiety over working with chicken! Learn how this Craftsy class was designed to best answer your chicken-cooking questions.

Lesson 3. Bone-In Breasts

Master this classic cut as you learn how to remove rib meat and portion larger breasts. Cook along with Marge as she makes bone-in breasts stuffed with cheese, tomato and parsley.

4:07

Lesson 4. Chicken Wings

Break down a wing into its parts — drumette, flat and tip — as you learn an alternative cooking method to get crispy, browned, succulent wings. Marge shares her secret wing-sauce ingredient, too.

9:11

Lesson 5. Chicken Thighs

Discover chicken’s most versatile cut as you learn to prepare uniform, baked bone-in thighs with a sweet and savory rub.

8:17

Lesson 6. Drumsticks

Delve deeper into working with dark meat as you master techniques for browning and braising and build a hearty
osso-buco-style dish. Learn how to tell when your drumsticks are done and Marge’s tip for avoiding chicken that sticks to the pan.

9:26

Lesson 7. Spatchcocking

Make a fully roasted chicken in half the time! Learn the classic technique of spatchcocking, where you remove the backbone of a whole bird to flatten it out before cooking. Brown the chicken in a cast-iron skillet and then roast it in the oven in a delicious lemon and oregano sauce.

12:24

Lesson 8. Cooking the Whole Bird

Nothing is more impressive than a whole-roasted chicken. Discover what type of pan will produce a crisp, brown bird. Marge demonstrates an easy and flavorful method for seasoning your bird with garlic and rosemary. Learn to separate the skin from a whole bird and how to truss —or tie up — your bird. Finally, learn the critical last step to ensure your roasted bird has a crispy skin.

11:52

Lesson 9. Cutting Up a Whole Bird

Learn how to separate legs, thighs, wings and breasts from a whole bird. Discover which parts are best for use in making a stock and finish your education with a lesson on avoiding cross-contamination by following proper hand-washing protocol.

"I really enjoyed this course. The techniques presented are basic but crucial, starting out with Ms. Perry's emphasis on avoiding cross-contamination and using a instant read thermometer to monitor doneness for every dish. I liked the logical organization of the classes, beginning with boneless chicken breasts and moving up to cooking the whole bird. Techniques are always clearly demonstrated for the viewer (a
great thing about Craftsy classes) and I enjoyed the recipes Ms. Perry included: not complicated but with an attention to detail and little touches that really make a difference to the final result." - Emily31Cape Cod. MA

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Lesson plan

1:21

Lesson 1. Introduction

Meet food writer, cookbook author and culinary instructor Marge Perry, and let go of your anxiety over working with chicken! Learn how this Craftsy class was designed to best answer your chicken-cooking questions.

Lesson 3. Bone-In Breasts

Master this classic cut as you learn how to remove rib meat and portion larger breasts. Cook along with Marge as she makes bone-in breasts stuffed with cheese, tomato and parsley.

4:07

Lesson 4. Chicken Wings

Break down a wing into its parts — drumette, flat and tip — as you learn an alternative cooking method to get crispy, browned, succulent wings. Marge shares her secret wing-sauce ingredient, too.

9:11

Lesson 5. Chicken Thighs

Discover chicken’s most versatile cut as you learn to prepare uniform, baked bone-in thighs with a sweet and savory rub.

8:17

Lesson 6. Drumsticks

Delve deeper into working with dark meat as you master techniques for browning and braising and build a hearty
osso-buco-style dish. Learn how to tell when your drumsticks are done and Marge’s tip for avoiding chicken that sticks to the pan.

9:26

Lesson 7. Spatchcocking

Make a fully roasted chicken in half the time! Learn the classic technique of spatchcocking, where you remove the backbone of a whole bird to flatten it out before cooking. Brown the chicken in a cast-iron skillet and then roast it in the oven in a delicious lemon and oregano sauce.

12:24

Lesson 8. Cooking the Whole Bird

Nothing is more impressive than a whole-roasted chicken. Discover what type of pan will produce a crisp, brown bird. Marge demonstrates an easy and flavorful method for seasoning your bird with garlic and rosemary. Learn to separate the skin from a whole bird and how to truss —or tie up — your bird. Finally, learn the critical last step to ensure your roasted bird has a crispy skin.

11:52

Lesson 9. Cutting Up a Whole Bird

Learn how to separate legs, thighs, wings and breasts from a whole bird. Discover which parts are best for use in making a stock and finish your education with a lesson on avoiding cross-contamination by following proper hand-washing protocol.

The instructor

Marge Perry, Instructor of Cooking Essentials: All About Chicken

Marge Perry is an award-winning cookbook author and food writer. She is a columnist for Newsday, a masthead contributor for Cooking Light and author of the "Ask The Expert" column on MyRecipes.com. Her work often appears in magazines and newspapers, including Better Homes and Gardens, Self, Eating Well and The New York Times. Marge is a longtime instructor at the Institute of Culinary Education, where she works with home cooks to understand their needs and concerns. She is thrilled to empower students with the knowledge it takes to cook with ease, confidence and pleasure.

Ratings & reviews

Class rating

(38 reviews)

All About Chicken

by tammycero7453895 on May 18, 2015

Simple easy to make chicken!

Simple easy to make chicken!

Chicken

by oliviahug8166993 on May 12, 2015

Very informative and easy to follow.

Very informative and easy to follow.

Everyone Needs To See This!

by gronek_r967155 on May 9, 2015

Wonderful information and recipes and just sensible information about the meat we all cook and love! Pleasant style and comfortable teaching on the part of the instructor. Thank you , Craftsy!

Wonderful information and recipes and just sensible information about the meat we all cook and love! Pleasant style and comfortable teaching on the part of the instructor. Thank you , Craftsy!

Whole Chicken

by Arteria on May 2, 2015

I love the tips on how to achieve crispy skin on my chicken.

I love the tips on how to achieve crispy skin on my chicken.

Great Value

by jmpinto25 on April 29, 2015

I am so glad I took this course. I am a beginner cook and I have learned so much. Marge is an excellent instructor. I love her style.

I am so glad I took this course. I am a beginner cook and I have learned so much. Marge is an excellent instructor. I love her style.

Not at all! Marge stresses the importance of an instant-read thermometer (analog or digital), but other than that, you likely have all of the tools already: pots, pans and a roasting or cooling rack of some sort!